Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Anything stuffed into a mushroom is a winner in my book. We have all been to parties where there are cream cheese stuffed mushroom topped with bacon and I am by no means meaning to disresepct this old, southern appetizer. In fact, if you are having a party that I am invited to, please make these as I do love them. Sometimes it is fun to add an interesting twist to this classic though so I decided to give these a shot. The recipe is courtesy of Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman from the Food Network.

Heat butter in a saucepan then toss mushroom caps in butter for about two minutes. Remove the mushrooms and, in the same pan, heat olive mixture for a minute or two

Place mozzarella half into each mushroom cap. Top with olive topping. Since not everyone loves the strong taste of olives and sundried tomatoes, I decided to make half of them plain. Generously cover each mushroom with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

As soon as you remove them from the oven, sprink them with sea salt.

These are so delicious and easy to make. Honestly, they are heavenly when served warm but are still pretty tasty once they have cooled off too.

If you have any leftover after your party, chop & toss into a pasta mixture. Delish!!

Monday, November 12, 2012

Here's the deal, I actually hate cooking. I don't mind preparing things, like a fabulous salad or chicken salad or egg salad. Basically anything that you can mix up with mayo & it automatically tastes delicious. My mashed potatoes are amazing but, let's face it, they're pretty hard to messs up. I can also order like none other. Ever tried White Chicken Chili from Roasters (Atlanta friends)? It's delicious, inexpensive and ready when I want it.

That being said, my husband & I do try to cook on Sundays. Mainly, I am the sous chef, he then makes a huge mess, we eat (around 9:00 p.m.), and I clean. I recently decided that, while I am not talented in the main dish or side dish categories, I may actually have an inclination for appetizers. This would serve two purposes:
1. I would get to try out new recipes without the fear of ruining an entire meal
2. I could get something yummy in my tummy before it is bedtime!

This month, I will show you three of my favorites, starting with BOURBON BACON TOAST. How delicious does that sound? And you know if I am making it, it must be easy! I hope you will give it a try.

Bourbon Bacon Toast Recipe

1 loaf of wheat bread

2 tbs. bourbon

1 jar mango chutney

1 lb. bacon

No, I didn't actually use all of the bacon shown. The day before I had made some deviled eggs. If you've never sprinkled bacon on your deviled eggs, give it a shot. It is fabulous!!

I actually paired down the recipe to meet my needs. I mixed 1 tbs. bourbon with 4 tbs. mango chutney...yes, I see that my bourbon to mango ratio is probably higher than it should be.

I used a measuring cup to stamp out the wheat bread, topped it with the mixture & added a generous amount of bacon.

I then put it under the broiler for 3 minutes. This is what happened:

Seriously, this is not new to me. How on earth does one burn something in a mere 3 minutes? I am cursed!

I had slept well the night before so I didn't have a complete meltdown (ha ha!). Since I had plenty of ingredients leftover (loads of bacon!), I immediately tried again. This time, I put it under the broiler for 2 minutes, which was perfect. Look how pretty!

Next time, I think I may heat the bourbon/chutney mixture for 30 seconds in the microwave to help it heat through since it is in the oven for such a short time.

I hope you will give this a try. And if you burn it to a crisp, I hope you will try it again! :)

About Me

PixieDustCrafts

Pixie Dust Crafts is for those that love do-it-yourself projects, experimenting with beauty products, refurbishing furniture, and everything in between. Basically, I just love to play and hope you will enjoy my little adventures.
“Faith and trust, all you need is pixie dust.”
-Tinkerbell